The sport of rock climbing is becoming more popular as a means of recreation. In order to develop the necessary skills to participate in this sport, many individuals practice on a simulation device that typically includes a climbing wall containing a plurality of man made climbing holds fastened thereto. Climbing of these man made walls has also become a sport of its own, with walls being designed to accommodate the various skill levels of climbers. In the United States, climbers use a standard rating system to describe the difficulty of different routes. There are six classes in this system, ranging from class one (normal walking) through hiking, scrambling and then climbing at class five. Everything known as “rock climbing” falls in class five. Class six are rock walls that are so smooth that there is no way to climb them without artificial aids (i.e. special climbing ladders or equipment). Within class five there are fourteen different levels that break down in the following manner: 5.0 through 5.4—beginner level which is easy to climb, like a ladder. 5.5 through 5.7—intermediate level which is climbable in normal shoes or boots but requiring more skill. 5.8 through 5.10—experienced level, which requires climbing shoes, experience and strength. 5.11 through 5.12—expert level that perhaps only the top 10% of climbers in the world can climb these routes. 5.13 through 5.14—elite level which can only be climbed by the best of the best.
The basic premise behind rock climbing is extremely simple. The climber is trying to climb from the bottom to the top of something. If that was all there were to it, then the climber would need nothing but his or her body and a good pair of climbing shoes. However, safety issues arise in the sport if the climber slips anywhere along the way. Because of the possibility of falling, rock climbing involves a great deal of highly specialized equipment to catch climbers when they fall.
Part of the specialized equipment includes climbing holds. Climbing holds are grabbed and stepped on by a climber in order to ascend the wall. It is important for the holds to be rigidly secured to the climbing wall in order to prevent the hold from moving under the weight of a climber. Also, climbing holds come in a variety of configurations in order to simulate movement patterns in climbing. Such holds are typically formed of synthetic material such as a polyester resin, which gives hold a rough texture.
There are two conventional types of climbing walls that are used to simulate rock climbing activity. The first type of climbing wall includes a substantially vertical climbing surface that has a rock like texture (See e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 5,254,058 to Savigny, “Artificial climbing wall with modular rough surface”, Oct. 19, 1993). The shape or texture of the climbing wall determines the level of difficulty associated with maneuvering around this type of climbing wall. The second type of climbing wall includes rock-like hand and foot holds that are attached to a normal (i.e., substantially smooth) wall (See e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 5,125,877 to Brewer, “Simulated climbing wall,” Jun. 30, 1992). There are two ways to adjust the level of difficulty associated with maneuvering about this type of climbing wall. First, the location of the holds on the wall vary according the level of skill of a particular climber. Second, the shape of the individual holds can be modified in order to make them easier or more difficult to grasp.
Using artificial climbing walls to simulate outdoor rock climbing activity is well known. Artificial climbing walls provide rock-climbing enthusiasts with the opportunity to simulate outdoor rock climbing activity at an easily accessible location. The climbing holds are normally attached to a wall using bolts or threaded rods. The climbing holds are typically of varying shapes and textures that affect the level of skill required to maneuver on the climbing wall. In particular, climbing walls that have a minimal number of holds are harder to grasp and make the wall harder to negotiate. Another factor affecting the level of skill required to maneuver on the climbing wall is the position of the climbing holds on the climbing wall. The closer the climbing holds are positioned relative to one another, the more climbing holds there are available for grasping by a climber as the climber maneuvers on the climbing wall.
Prior art climbing holds present significant problems when attempting to properly secure them to a climbing wall. Climbing holds typically have an aperture extending therethrough in order to permit a bolt to extend and threadably engage the climbing wall. The bolt is tightened to secure the climbing hold to the wall and prevent the hold from either transitional or rotational movement. In order to ensure that the hold does not rotate, a bolt must be tightened to a certain torque such that the hold is tight against the wall and prevented from rotating by the frictional force existing between the planar mounting face of the hold and the opposing portion of the climbing wall. However, in attempting to prevent the climbing hold from moving, the bolt may be over tightened resulting in the molded body of the climbing hold to fracture. The head of the bolt upon engaging the upper body portion of the climbing hold creates an area of high stress concentration adjacent to the bolt head making the hold susceptible to cracking about this area. Accordingly, a narrowly acceptable range of torque results in order to ensure that the climbing hold is properly secured but not damaged. Fracture of the hold may lead to the hold falling from the wall upon being stressed by the weight of a climber. Since a climber may place all of their weight on a particular hold, its breaking may result in a fall that could injure the climber.
Known climbing holds have some limits and drawbacks. In fact, when holds are applied to and integrated into the climbing wall, the same are substantially fixed as regards positions, number and conformation, and substantially do not enable the climbing situations and problems to be changed in order to modify the degree of technical difficulty in climbing, unless specialized interventions and/or rearrangements involving manipulations are carried out. In addition, it should be noted that known climbing holds are heavy and of difficult, expensive and unquick construction.
Another problem associated with a climbing hold is that it has a tendency to loosen as climbers use it. Depending on how a climber grasps the climbing hold, the climber may generate a torque on the hold which could rotate (i.e., loosen) the hold from the climbing wall. The present invention overcomes this and other problems associated with the prior art.